A Bit Early But Never Too Rash
by lorddior
Summary: When in pursuit of the seemingly unattainable, the smallest of hopes that are given may rush us a bit, but never enough to spoil. JPLE SBRL Oneshot


This was a fic written for my friend as her birthday present :D

For once, SBRL is not the main pairing but JPLE.

There'll probably me tons of typos :( Bear with me..I was in a rush(as always :P)

Hope you enjoy it, and review is love :)

* * *

Lily Evans may be muggle born, but it is a well known fact that she is one of the brightest students existent in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

She tops in most of her classes except perhaps Divination, but no one cares for Divination, so she isn't immensely upset nor disturbed that she couldn't and still can't see anything in her tea leaves ever since she started in third grade. Plus, it's not like Professor Delinor is helping much, so she really doesn't bother to blame herself for her futile results.

Other than that, as mentioned earlier, she can pull off pretty much every subject with a perfect score.

However, although Lily Evans may be Charms genius, Potions mistress, Transfiguration expert, prefect and head girl extraordinaire, she still cannot understand one thing that seems unlikely to change no matter how hard she wishes for it.

At this very moment she can almost feel Potter, James Potter with the big fat head of his, just running across the green houses.

She wishes he would get stuck in the patch of Devil Snarls.

"Evans!"

Evidently he hasn't.

She continues to ignore, him, thinking of a way to avoid him more affectively, because recently she has grown to not be able to just ignore him as simply as she did before. Although she hates to admit it, his 'maturity-scheme' is probably working.

"Evans!" he calls again, and Lily can't help but let out a long suffering sigh.

"What, Potter?" she snaps and it's far too easy once she does it. At least Potter doesn't try to hide the hurt now, so it's not as annoying as before.

"So," he starts as casually still, even with that still slightly hard smirk. "this weekend's Hogsmede weekend, Evans."

"I'm perfectly aware of the dates, thank you, Potter." and Lily retorts just as coldly as ever. Really, Potter was one of those people who were just too easy to hide away from if you had more than 3seconds of an acquaintance.

"Well?" he asks, raising an eyebrow, and Lily can't help but roll her eyes, because he also seems to be able to grow arrogant just as before after a few seconds of the very first yet thousandth speech.

"I doubt you're as thick as to ask the same question again and get the same answer." Lily replies pointedly as she turns away, taking off her dragon skin gloves.

"You wound me, Evans." Potter sighs deeply, and Lily is glad she has her back to him because she nearly snickers, which a pompous bastard like Potter would take as a sign of affection. "But seriously, why not?"

Well, Lily thinks inwardly. Why in Merlin's name would she want go out with an idiot like Potter?

"I laid off Snivellus." the coincidence is almost frightening.

"His name is Severus, Potter." Lily snaps, and she's a bit surprised herself that she's still standing up for Snape.

"Yes," she can almost see Potter waving a hand as if batting away an invisible hand. "Severus." and it doesn't take a genius to realize that he's grudgingly pulling the name out of his barred teeth. Ah, what one does for love, or as he says something like love.

Lily nods curtly, but soon realizes that that was a grave mistake. She's not at all surprised at what comes next, but annoyed nonetheless.

"Is that a yes?" and Potter's voice suggest that his vocal cords are almost struggling to rip past his throat.

"No." It takes all too many experience and challenge to learn how to deal with Potter by the easy way. Some people are just as simple as furry household pets; messy, loud, energetic, and persistent. However, Lily muses, Potter did lack adorableness, so he wouldn't really be a pet but more of a pest.

"What?" Potter almost screams again, this time in shock of disbelief. "Snape deserves to be called by his first name, but I don't deserve a nice weekend?"

So maybe Potter was still a tad away from succeeding from his 'maturity scheme'.

"First of all Potter," she grits out, turning to face him, and she knows her eyes might turn a pale shade of green, cold and menacing just for the moment. "Severus isn't a lower being, and second, you're just too selfish."

"What?" So much for 'maturity-scheme'.

"What makes you think that I'll enjoy my weekend if you do?" his arrogant assumptions never fail to amuse her.

And she also hates the fact that her arguing time with Potter is growing longer by the days.

Definitely time to go.

Lily has long understood that there is no real point in ending a conversation properly with Potter, so all she needs to do is walk away.

She's glad that Potter is still spluttering words like "What did I do?" or "Wait, Evans, I'm sorry!". It is truly hilarious.

JLJLJL

James doesn't understand Evans, although he knows that isn't really a problem for him.

It's been several years now, him trying to get Evans to like him.

No, correction; several years to get her to go out with him, and a year to actually get her to like him.

So, maybe it's only fair that he'd have to wait another several years, but he's certainly not willing to do that. He doubts he couldn't wait, but he knows he doesn't want to for sure.

"James-" something moves in front of his face. "Oh, Jamsie. Anyone home?"

He slaps the hand away, and hears snickers.

"What?" he asks pointedly to Sirius, who is still snickering.

"Wormtail asked you to pass him the chicken, Prongs." Remus explains instead, and he too seems very amused.

James mumbles an apology and passes the chicken to Peter, who seems famished but still has the power left to snigger as well.

"Shut up." James snaps, more to Sirius than to Peter. Sirius can be such a bastard at times, just like now when he's banging the table mercilessly as if begging for attention. Well, everyone gives him attention anyway, and James knows he's not interested in getting anyone's attention except for one person.

Obviously, Remus isn't much interested by the racket, because it's something they've all grown used to during the past years spent together.

"Is there something wrong, James?" he asks instead, and Sirius snaps up. What a total idiot.

"Wrong my ass." Sirius snorts, and James wants to say something because Sirius just took away a question directed to him. "Day dreaming about Evans, aren't you, Prongsie?"

James snorts, but doesn't retort because it would be a lie if he did deny it.

"Prongs," Peter whines. "The pumpkin juice, please?" it's almost a whimper and James can't help but imagine just how much Peter has been calling again just right now.

"Sorry, Pete." he really does feel apologetic, because Peter and Remus aren't as evil as Sirius. Still, James doubts that Peter would pass this section of teasing if he weren't so famished.

"Really, though." Sirius continues, and he must be really loud because James hears him at once. "You're just plain pathetic, mate. P.a.t.h.e.t.ic." and he continues to eat before James can even retort.

"Well, then." Remus quietly gets up, with a slight smile that means he's been waiting for his turn to speak. "I think I'll be getting up." and he does get up, unlike some people who hang around even after saying so.

"Where're you going?" Sirius asks, still with some food in his mouth, which he hastily swallows.

"Common room." Remus replies. "I need to finish DA."

"But you don't need to study DA!" Sirius protests, and his face is one of whom has just learned the unfairness and bitterness of life, which James can't help but snigger at.

"Let the man study, Pads." he says, and Sirius looks betrayed. "Really, you're the one who's pathetic." and that earns him a scowl.

And just when he's about to continue to finish his dinner, he learns quickly and effectively that his food is no longer his, but that of a crowd of ants.

JLJLJL

Lily isn't really sure if the library is a safe place any longer.

She's used to coming to the library just as much as her fellow prefect and classmate Remus Lupin is, but she knows that because of Remus, the little gang also stops by often.

She hates it because Potter seems to have developed some sort of magical detector that identifies which section, which table she's sitting at, studying which books.

She quickly learns that thinking about it is surprisingly even creepier than the experience at that time, and so she shakes her head and hurries to the least crowded section of the library.

She is unsurprised to find other company, who she feels are becoming as annoying as Potter.

She turns away in one swift swish, and heads to sit with a couple of her fellow Gryffindor girls and a couple of Ravenclaws.

JLJLJL

James knows that Evans is growing on him, because she no longer shoots him hexes that will keep him in the hospital wing to next week.

Plus, what's more that is that based on what Remus said, Evans doesn't frown much even when he does mention James Potter. Of course, James is most thankful to Remus because Remus must have talked about the better side of him, even when James had quite literally forced Remus to mention him to Evans during prefect duties.

He decides that Remus deserves so much a better person than Sirius, but also decides that that is not the point at the moment, because he has just realized that Evans isn't here in the common room nor Gryffindor tower in general. Of course, he wouldn't know about the girl's dormitories, but he does know that Evans never studies in the dormitory and that she is studying at the very moment so she musn't be in the dorms.

"Moony," he calls in a hushed voice.

Remus looks up, and at the same time Sirius does as well, who happens to be quite close to Remus, at least pretending to study, because Remus only allows people who study to come next to himself when studying.

"Not you, Padfoot." he snaps, and earns a frown but is still left with a pair of grey eyes staring. He decides to ignore them, and continue talking to Remus. Remus never likes to be called if the initiator does not serve the purpose, so he hurries and gets to the point. "Moony, do you know where Evans is?"

Remus smiles slightly and Sirius makes a face.

"Stalker." he mutters, before looking at Remus this time, his expression soft. James feels like teasing Sirius about that all the time, but he knows Sirius is serious and he shouldn't be making fun of such even if Sirius does to him.

"No, James, I'm sorry, but I don't." Polite, kind Remus. "But you have the map, don't you?" he adds quietly.

Oh. Of course, there was the map. James nearly slaps himself for not thinking of using something when it could serve a rightful purpose.

But then again, he remembers that he is never one to forget about using his possessions in appropriate moments. Remus' face also draws to remembrance.

"Moony," Sirius teases softly. "Filch took it away."

"I just remembered, Padfoot," Remus closes his eyes and shakes his head. "Can't we bring it back? There is the cloak."

"Did I just hear right?" James teases, and he feels free to tease of such even if Remus doesn't, because it's nothing really hurtful and Remus is missing the fun for himself if he doesn't tease at all. "Moony, our Moony wants to break the rules?"

Sirius laughs and ruffles Remus' hair, and James laughs as Remus sighs and tidies his hair once more.

"Besides," James continues. "Filch made Flitwick do some sort of blocking charm so that only himself, his cat and the staff can get in." Really, he hates Flitwick for that.

Remus sighs again, and it's almost slightly comic.

"I guess she'd be in the library, then." he finally decides after a moment. "She'd probably be somewhere less crowded unless it's occupied."

James knows that when a seat is 'occupied' for Evans, it's either taken by the rest of the Marauders except for Remus or that it's taken by Snape.

Since they're all here in the common room(well, Peter's in the dorm, but that doesn't matter when making his point), it must be Snape.

James knows that Evans hates Snape now, perhaps just as much as the rest of the school. He reckons it's more like a sort of indifference before actual encounter, but still, he notices Evans isn't and doesn't try to stand up for Snape as before.

"Going after Evans again, Prongs?" Sirius asks, when Remus is back to his book.

James nods and looks at Remus who evidently can't spare another thought on him or Sirius, and looks back at Sirius and winks.

Sirius grins, and winks back, waving a hand that indicates James to go away.

James complies, because he has already been intending to go away anyway.

JLJLJL

Lily decides she doesn't hate the entire population of mankind.

Of course, she still does dislike, if not despise Potter and Black and a couple more, perhaps even Snape, but she knows that she doesn't really dislike the rest.

Take this Ravenclaw boy sitting across from her. He seems decent enough. Quiet and studious, although his question solving abilities suggest he's either rather dumb for a Ravelclaw, or not paying as much attention as he seems to.

Remus is certainly a nice boy, although sometimes as mischievous as the rest of the gang, and Peter Pettigrew is also quite a kind boy, up to the point where Lily feels pity for him for being stuck with Potter and Black.

Her thoughts quickly seize as the discussion around her seizes and there is silence, and she can almost feel the arrogant presence, if not an evil one.

So, before anything can be said and before anyone of the study group can forever hate her because of the interruption and possibly existent hexes, she gets up and hurries out of the library.

Lily's seen Potter and his gang disappear and appear from thin air, and she hopes she wasn't imagining it, because that would be a most certain sign of a mental breakdown.

However, she's sure that it really is as she sees it, and desperately wishes that she had the ability to do so as well especially at moments like this.

"Evans! Hey, Evans!"

Even as she is running for her life just to reach the girls' dormitory before having to face Potter again, she manages an eye roll, and silently stops herself from shouting 'What now, Potter?'

"Evans, wait!"

Lily is horrified to find her feet actually stopping for a moment and her body half turning around. Hopefully, Potter hasn't seen that or will just pass it as his imagination.

Of course, Potter is never modest enough to think himself as illusional.

"Evans! I saw you stop! Just wait a moment!"

Lily sighs and decides that she should at least say something.

"Potter, if you keep following me, I'm going to hex you."

Of course, Potter is no one to be affected by such threats.

"That's fine." he responds, and it's in an ever so bright voice. "Now will you stop?"

Letting out a groan, Lily stops in her tracks and turns around to face Potter. She's a tad bit startled that he's right behind her.

"What do you want now, Potter?" she asks, and she's disappointed in herself that it doesn't come out as mean as she intended because it's mingled with harsh breaths that are more like pants.

James has nothing to say of course. It's either that he declares his undying love for Evans or it's nothing. He doesn't have any small talk for her, but he is always able to make some in such situations.

"Isn't the weather fine today?" Oh bugger.

Evan's frown deepens, and she actually looks quite concerned for a moment.

"Potter," she starts in a slightly slow voice. "It's been storming for the past few days."

"I know, but..." James feels stupid, but he is never discouraged. "..isn't it ever so romantic? The storm, I mean."

Lily almost laughs at that.

"Potter," she shakes her head, because she can't help but find this very amusing. "I never knew you had a sense of romance."

James is immediately encouraged. Of course that would have worked. He thanks his inner self.

"Well, it is, really." he continues in a slightly proud voice and gesture. "That is, if you leave out wet dogs, but yes, storms are quite fascinatingly romantic, don't you think?"

Lily wonders how anything can be 'fascinatingly romantic' and is despaired a moment later that she's actually thinking over the nonsense Potter has just uttered.

She shakes her head again, and turns back to her original track. She's almost at Gryffindor tower, so it won't be long before she is left with peace in mind once again.

James opens his mouth to say something, but experience has told him that he has won approval of Lily Evans if in the strangest way possible.

He whistles some muggle love song Sirius had been listening to during summer breaks, and heads to Gryffindor tower as well, making sure he has some distance between Lily and himself.

JLJLJL

Lily has to admit that James is quite brilliant when it comes to Transfiguration. If she could manage it, she would admit, although grudgingly, that he's good at pretty much everything, but she doesn't go that far to compliment him with such.

"Cool, isn't it, Evans?" Potter still asks nonetheless, and his hand moves to his hair for a moment before it hurriedly changes direction slightly so that he can tuck the hair back behind his ear.

Lily doesn't reply, and Black sniggers.

She doesn't stop to look at how James responds, because it's ever so easy to expect what his face would be like now.

She feels victorious and troubled at the same time.

JLJLJL

"You know," Sirius starts after he takes a long drag of butterbeer. "you don't need to be all morose just because we're here in the Three Broomsticks instead of Pudifoot's with Evans."

"I would never go to Pudifoots." James snaps back, because Pudifoots is a total and utter disgrace to all men with dignity. "Besides, it's not even 'us' it's just you and me."

Sirius looks a bit abashed at that.

"Well," he's always quick to recover. "It's not my fault that Pete and Remus are both out with dates." he seems a bit tragic when he says it.

"Remus is out with a date?" James asks, because really, he hadn't expected that. He thought that Remus was studying. "Didn't he say he was studying?"

"Well, yeah." Sirius scratches his head with a slight frown. "But, you know, turns out he has a girlfriend in the study group, so it's technically a date, isn't it? Seeing as the other members are all out here like us."

"Oh." So, Remus did have a girlfriend. How could he be so subtle about that? "How did you know that?"

"Saw them..you know, doing..." Sirius trails off, burying his face into his hands.

"Doing what?" James almost panics, because Sirius not being able to describe a sexual action is so unusual and frightening.

"You know." Sirius' voice is a bit muffled, but it's clear he's miserable. "Holding hands. They were holding hands." he whispers the last part fiercely and quickly.

James blinks.

And he turns into fits of laughter.

He can feel people in the pub as well as Rosmerta looking at him, but he can't bring himself to care nor stop. He can't stop even when Sirius reveals an eye and glares at him.

"What's so funny?" he asks in anger and hurt, and James manages to regain his breath just because of the latter feeling Sirius has shown.

"I'm sorry." he apologizes breathlessly. "But...Merlin, Pads. Holding hands isn't that serious, is it?"

Sirius scowls at him.

"Holding hands will become kisses and kisses will become snogs and snogs will become _it_s. How is that not serious in any way?" he asks pointedly.

James bursts out into laughter once more.

"Well, then," he finally manages still through fits of laughter. "Interfere so it doesn't go to stage two." and he continues to laugh straight after that, and he no longer hears the murmurs nor feel the stares directed to him.

Sirius looks confused before he bursts out laughing as well.

"I'm pathetic, aren't I?" he manages, as breathless as James, but James is slightly better off at the moment only if he weren't about to choke.

James shakes his head, because really, even though Sirius does seem pathetic, it really isn't pathetic at all. He attempts to drink the butterbeer, but nearly chokes on it, and it's far more vile because he has butterbeer in his nose instead of his own spit or just no breath in his lungs.

They laugh a bit more, James with the sweetness and slightly bitterness of butterbeer still in his nostrils.

The phrase 'lovesick puppy' fits perfectly for Sirius, because he is technically an overgrown puppy, but James isn't a puppy let alone a canine.

"Then you're an lovesick deer." Sirius giggles, and it's ridiculous that his giggles aren't girly at the very least, that it makes James doubt whether they should be called giggles at all. "Or a lovesick Bambi."

"Isn't Bambi a girl?" James asks with a frown.

"No." Sirius smirks. "Well, he did look like one, but doesn't he have antlers later on?"

And James knows this is a lost game because he hasn't seen the movie and he'll just have to agree.

They talk about nonsense for a bit more, and James decides that Sirius is a definite pervert, and maybe even that he himself isn't really sure if he wants Sirius to get to Remus in that case.

"You know, that's just creepy." he finally says after Sirius proposes his idea of using love potion. "No, correction, that's just evil, not even creepy."

"Well, do you have any better ideas?" Sirius snaps, and it's so defiant that for a minute James actually think there is no other choice.

But of course, there is. Sirius always had a thing for ensuing confusion within him and most other people as well, so it only proves that he and Sirius really are the best of mates because he is able to get over the confusion quickly enough to retort.

"You could always ask him like I do to Lily." and even though he has just given a pretty reasonable solution, James knows that Sirius will be enraged one way or the other.

"Have you lost your bloody mind?" Sirius hisses and leans over the table as if fearing that anyone would hear. "I can't just ask him. That's...that's..."

"He'd have already figured it out." James says defiantly and gets up. "Moony is smart. How can you expect him not to?" but he knows that Sirius does know Remus must have figured it out by now, but he only wishes that Remus hasn't.

Sirius grumbles something just like that, and James feels like his friend needs to brighten up. The Three Broomsticks is bright and crowded, but James knows far better that these sort of places that are full of people and noise and life are the places that make you feel the utmost pathetic and depressed and isolated as well.

"Come on," he nudges Sirius' arm and gets him to stand up. "Let's go to Zonkos and see what we can do about Snviellus."

Sirius' face brightens up brilliantly and immediately at that, and James knows he can break a promise to Evans every once a while just if it makes the worst the best.

JLJLJL

Lily Evans has always lived with a certain idea of how to succeed. She always believed that with patience, persuasion and persistence anyone could do anything they wanted.

Of course, this rule never applied to some people for her.

"But I do persuade, I am patient and am very persistent!" James protests, and Lily wonders just how he even knows the three things she values the most. Obviously he's been going through her diary again.

"On the contrary," Lily starts, quite calmer than expected. "You are horribly unpersuasive and although you may be persistent, you aren't patient at all. If you were patient, you wouldn't be trying to persuade me every dozen times of day, would you?"

The 'oh' that forms on Potter's lips as well as the realization in his eyes makes Lily regret having ever said anything.

JLJLJL

"There goes Evans." Sirius remarks, and James nearly looks up from his magazine just at that, but he manages to keep himself looking into the article of the newest brooms. Only thing is, he can't really read the words now, and even when he manages to, he has forgotten just where he left the article.

"James, is everything all right?" Remus asks, and he sounds vaguely worried.

James nods, takes a deep breath and finally looks up.

"You've already missed her, mate." Sirius comments, and he's wearing this suspicious look on his face.

"I know." James replies. "It was deliberate."

"Deliberate?" Peter asks, and he looks a bit anxious as well. "Did she tell you off again, Prongs?"

"Not that it's something noteworthy." Sirius snorts instead. "What did she tell you this time, Bambi?"

"I'm not Bambi." James bites out, because really, Bambi is just a humiliating name both privately and out in public.

"Bambi?" Remus raises an eyebrow. "You know who or what Bambi is, Sirius?"

"Of course I do!" Sirius almost manages to sound insulted. "The baby deer! It's a cartoon character from some muggle film or such. Bisney, was it?"

"Disney." Remus corrects. "And you say you've been taking Muggle Studies."

"I have!" Sirius protests. "It's not like they teach us muggle film history or something like that."

"What did she tell you, Prongs?" Peter interferes, and James has to love Peter for being able to interfere when Sirius starts to get into a one-sided argument with Remus.

"Patience." James replies shortly. He really can't do anything about the confused expressions of his friends though, because that's what Evans really told him.

There is sudden silence, and James is a bit bewildered, but he decides he doesn't mind. Silence isn't that bad once you get used to it, after all.

"Well?" Sirius finally interferes.

"What do you mean, well?" James asks blankly, and it's certainly not the first time he thinks Sirius is being ridiculous.

"You told us to wait. Might as well tell us seeing that you're doing nothing in particular." Sirius continues with a slight frown.

"Oh." And James still thinks Sirius is silly, but the rest seemed to have understood it just as Sirius did as well, so he can't really blame them all. "I meant that she said I should have patience."

Another moment of short silence falls, but James can literally feel that it's a different sort from last time. It's almost as if ha can hear each individual's brain quickly spinning as if to make sure they have heard correct if not interpret incorrectly.

"Patience?" Remus finally repeats, and he looks even more suspicious of both James and Lily. James, for he could possibly be confusing words, and Lily for all he knows she might be losing her mind.

"Yeah, patience." James replies, and he thinks this is the right time to explain the conversation, but Lily comes back in, telling her friends she left her book, and he hurriedly buries his face in the magazine again, earning a protest from the Bulgarians.

"And since when did patience mean taking cover everytime she came near?" Sirius asks, snatching the magazine brutally away from James, earning more shouts of protest from the Irish this time. "Prongs, stop being a stupid git."

"Well, I can't help it!" James finally exclaims, because it's unfair that he's been deprived of proper shelter.

"What do you mean, you can't help it?" Sirius snorts. "I can promise you right now, right here Prongs, that the Quidditch magazine doesn't have any sort of bloody answer to your bloody problems, and it certainly isn't good enough to hide your big fat head."

"It was meant to hide my face, you dimwit!" James protests, because no one, not anyone dares says he has a big head. "Anyway, that's not my point."

"Then what is your point?" Peter asks this time, and he seems a bit confused and annoyed all at the same time. "Did she tell you not to look at her?"

"Hell no." James is almost horrified at the very idea. Evans would never do that, no matter how much she hates him. Of course, only thing is, she doesn't. James can almost feel it nowadays. Lily is steadily softening, and he's winning this game, which is not quite as easy as any game should be. Perhaps a survival game, maybe, but certainly not Exploding Snap or chess or Quidditch.

"No, it's like." he tries to explain, but stops midway, because even when he hasn't yet formed the words, he just knows that it's a stupid reason in general.

"Are you actually worried that you might loose...said 'patience' when you see her?" Remus assists, and James is always grateful of the very helpful yet very few assistance Remus gives. They aren't frequent, seeing as Remus himself doesn't appreciate assistance, but they certainly are the most helpful and reasonable ones he gets from his three best friends.

He can feel himself nodding almost instantly, and he can make out a slight grin on Sirius' face through slightly blurred sight and a little chuckle Peter makes by throbbing ears.

"I doubt that ignoring her completely will be any help, though." Remus quips with a small smile himself. "You'd never be able to see her straight in the face later on."

And although James feels like protesting, he vaguely feels that Remus is absolutely right, not just because Remus is correct most of the times, but because he can almost imagine himself being in such a situation not long after.

"Oh, come on, Remus!" Sirius butts in with a bark like laughter. "Give our Prongsie some credit! He'd never be like that."

James appreciates that Sirius is trusting him, but he can't help but deny it.

"On the contrary, Pads, I think Remus is right." It's the bravest confession he's made after the 'I miss my teddy bear' in first year, and he's very proud of himself. "I think I'll go talk to her right now."

"Shouldn't you wait a bit for that?" Peter suggests. "I mean, she definitely won't be expecting you just now after you've ignored her twice. She'd think you're fickle and you just gave up trying to win her with indifference."

James must admit, that Peter is still the better advisor than the fully awake, conscious, sober Sirius.

So he sits back down with an agreement to Peter, snatches the magazine back from a rather dumfounded Sirius, and soon finds that the Chudley Cannons have round themselves around his hand, trying to claw him with there ink printed ones. He decides he should take the magazine to the showers now.

JLJLJL

Lily knows she shouldn't have been relieved that Potter was ignoring her presence twice in a row. It didn't take a day before he was following her again. The only difference was that, although he attempted conversations of all sorts, his so-called conversations never ended with a plea or demand or persuasion for her to go out with him.

She knew she deserved to hex herself in the head when she found that she was actually quite disappointed when she was ignored the second and last time. The slight hint of a smirk certainly didn't help her when James was talking to her again. Of course, the smirk soon became something that would make Lily capable of regaining herself once more, and she was glad that she successfully threatened James that if he didn't take away the water dripping magazine from her text book, she would hex him to oblivion.

That always worked with Potter, no matter how his face showed nothing more than a grin.

JLJLJL

James hated being head boy.

He and Sirius and Peter had all made fun of Remus when he had become prefect back in fifth year. They had thought they still had promised themselves to behave better, but they had to admit, with Remus never trying to interfere if possible, they were taking advantage of his position.

However, things were different now.

James himself was also in responsibility, so that made two among four. Sirius nearly strangled himself when James had received a letter along with his usual Hogwarts letter, that he had been made head boy. James had also nearly killed himself. Of course, he had outstanding grades, but none of them had expected Dumbledore to make a troublemaker a head boy.

James reckoned that he was ultimately made head boy because of what he did during the Prank last year and the fact that Dumbledore just wanted him to be a bit more serious. 'Grow up' as Lily kindly put it.

It felt and still feels like hell, actually knowing that he should interfere with the pranks Sirius and Peter continue to pull to this very day. Remus seemed oddly happy that James now knew just how painful it was when duty and friendship collided. James had felt immensely sorry for Moony back then when he first felt that, and even now.

It was strange though, because James knows there will be no harm done even if he did make a couple of pranks, or just dozed off during class, but he still tries his best to stop most pranks his best mates are planning, and also stay awake during classes on warm afternoons. No one would ever know it was him even if he did pull a prank every once a while, or simply slept during the entire class(which he knows he would have nothing to regret of even later), but yet he, or rather his subconscious self, seemed to take this more seriously that he himself or any of them wished or liked. Well, maybe except Remus or Dumbledore, but James also noticed that Remus was also growing a bit tired of his suddenly very dutiful attitudes. James decided he hated the old man, that is, Dumbledore.

JLJLJL

Being head girl was no difficulty for Lily, seeing as she had been prefect along with Remus starting from fifth year. Being head girl was no different nor difficult than being prefect had been, of course, that is if you had been a dutiful and honest prefect before.

Lily was never much for authority. She never really enjoyed controlling others. However, she knew that to certain people, it would not be 'force' but simply guidance of proper morals and decent behavior. She knew she needn't emphasize who those people were. So, she actually did enjoy authority towards those people, because it really was rightful and entirely appropriate.

However, even though she knew it was the best opportunity to catch those who were going against the simplest rules, she hated head girl duties, or rather, having a 'companion' to do it.

Yet, she never forgets nor ignores her duties, and even at this very moment, she heads out to do whatever a head girl and prefect should do.

JLJLJL

"I'll be seeing you lot later, I guess." James says quite happily as he gets up to attend his head boy duties.

"When'll you be back?" Sirius asks, carelessly taking away Remus' knight.

"Dunno." James shrugs, because it really depends on who or what comes up every night. "Long after curfew, I guess."

"It's already after curfew, Prongs." Remus reasons, and it's quite surprising how anyone can manage to be so calm even when they're playing a losing game. "It's been ten minutes."

"Six, actually." Peter interferes, as he pulls Remus' DA essay closer, after shoving Sirius' away. "Padfoot, I can't read what you wrote."

"Well, read Moony's then." Sirius retorts, taking away Remus' queen. It really is a lost game for Remus, but still Remus doesn't even look annoyed, other than for the small frown he's wearing from concentrating a bit too hard.

"No, you can't use mine alone, Peter." Remus mumbles, hand reaching out as if he's forgotten this is wizard chess. "Take a look at James' as well."

James doesn't want Peter to looking at his essay because the scribbles he hasn't been able to erase yet are just ridiculous.

"No, not mine." he disagrees, just after a moment long enough to prove that he isn't lying. "Doland said mine is always pathetic. You can just change the phrases of Moony's or make Pads here interpret his later."

"I'm done, but I'm not going to interpret anything for Wormtail." Sirius says, stretching and grinning, as Remus puts away the chess board.

James snorts at how ridiculously selfish Sirius could be if it weren't anything related to Remus. Still, James knows well enough that Sirius isn't really selfish when it comes to the three of his mates.

"I'll help you out, Wormtail." Remus says, finishing clearing out with a flicker of the wand. James nearly laughs out loud at the stricken expression on Sirius.

"What about Exploding Snap?" Sirius protests, but Remus is already half way to Peter, who also looks ridiculously relieved. "Moony!"

"Later, Sirius." Remus replies, as he settles down next to Peter. "You've had your fun with chess, now I want to help Peter."

James can't help but snigger at what expression that Sirius has caused to form on his face and he knows that he'll regret this all very soon in some unexpected way.

It comes sooner than expected.

"Aren't you supposed to be on the third floor now?" Sirius snaps, and that's when James realizes that he's been both letting his guard down far too much, and that he should check the time more often.

The next indecencies that flow out of his mouth are things that he never really catches, remembers or wants to be acknowledged of.

JLJLJL

Lily is certain that there is a school rule that strictly prohibits students from running down the hallway.

"Hey, Evans!" James calls as he nearly slides next to Lily, inches away from bumping into her. "Sorry I'm late and I'm running. Still, it's better than being later, right?"

Lily is almost even more speechless at how Potter can manage to make her speechless.

She decides to say nothing and simply makes a face of disapproval, which only earns her a wider grin.

She decides the ultimate escape is to just not look at him at all.

She isn't really concentrating on her duties for a change, because she keeps getting this nagging feeling that she should talk to Potter. Only thing is, she isn't sure what she wants to talk about with him. Certainly not the recent Charms essay or Advanced Potions class, or how the owls are just useless these days, or anything else.

She soon mourns in self pity for even thinking about what to discuss with Potter, and just as she decides that heads duties would be the best to discuss about, she nearly jumps up a foot from the floor.

"Snape!" Potter shouts, and just as Lily is feeling eased a moment later, she is once again surprised by another shout and quite tensed, as well as annoyed by the appearance of several more Slytherins.

Snape is the first to appear along with Black's little brother, and a couple more Slytherins that Lily remembers she sent to Filch just a few days ago.

"And I thought Slytherins were supposed to be sly and clever." she mutters almost subconsciously under her breath.

"No," James interrupts. "I think the latter was a quality for Ravenclaws."

Lily glares at James who shrugs in return. Really, James Potter was perhaps one of the least tactless people she ever knew. He could at least pretend to cooperate with her insulting the Slytherins for once, what with him being a Slytherin hater. She sighs deeply and turns to the Slytherins.

"I supposed you don't have anything to say even if I take off points?" she asks, facing each and every one of them, including her old and previous best friend.

The Slytherins look at one another, as if they are planning on running off.

But Lily is never too slow or hesitant to miss the moment, and she definitely does not enjoy standing there dumfounded once she realizes she has just missed the moment.

"Five points from you each, and let me do the math for you. That would be approximately twenty points from Slytherin."

"And you won't be able to win the house cup, because you suck in Quidditch as well." James butts in matter-a-factly.

Lily can do nothing but roll her eyes in exasperation. Really, she knew Potter was obsessed with some of the most...boyish things, and could not maintain his interest even in the most necessary and inappropriate moments, but this was just too much. She wouldn't be surprised if the Slytherins scoffed at Gryffindors, not that that was anything special nor different from now. The only thing that would change was the fact that the Gryffindors could no longer easily scoff back. But then again, most Gryffindors, including Lily herself, were quite shameless, so in conclusion nothing would really change.

But then, Lily realizes that there is something missing, something she is still waiting for.

Oh. And realization strikes her.

Snape isn't making the sarcastic comment he does everytime Potter says something, regardless of how stupid it is,

However, she is not in the mood(and never really is these days) to wait for a sarcastic comment to come, so she stares at the Slytherins once more.

"Now, go if you don't I'll take twice as much points off your little group."

"You forget that we have a prefect and head boy here as well!" Black's little brother protests, and Lily wonders just how stupid Black's brother is. Possibly stupider than Black himself.

She's ready to retort, when she realizes it's not her voice that is speaking when she opens her mouth to say something.

"Is that so, ickle Reggie?" Potter almost leers, and Lily can't help but sigh while struggling to hide a smile that appears as she sees just how ridiculously red Regulus Black becomes. "Well, seeing as Snivillus there _is_ prefect and head boy, but still hanging around with you after curfew not doing his duties, that only gives us Gryffindor prefects to cut out more points, doesn't it?"

Snape seems like he's almost ready to protest, but seems to decide not to.

"And thus, I think ten points from each of you would be just enough."

"Ten points?" Mulciber shouts. "Ten points?"

"Not enough? Tell you what, it'll be fifteen if you don't get a move on." Potter warns in an almost threatening voice, and Lily can't but appreciate his recklessness for once.

They give a dirty look and glare at both of them, and Potter sighs deeply.

"Well, seeing as you don't get the hint nor want my mercy, I guess it'll be sixt.."

But he never got to finish as there weren't any of them left to listen.

Lily feels strangely miserable and heavy, and she can't help but let out a long suffering sigh. Sometimes she just hates Dumbledore just as much as the rest.

"I did good, don't you think?"

A voice full of life and mischief and joy breaks her hatred toward the old man.

Potter is grinning widely at her, and his eyes are sparkling, and Lily thinks it's quite amusing that Potter is grinning like that after doing something that isn't quite technically a prank, but entertaining nonetheless.

"Better than I expected." she replies shortly, because she feels like grinning as well, and she knows that long comments will lead to it all the same. Still, she can't but add one more comment. "Good job for once, Potter."

Potter almost pouts, but it doesn't really have the effect it should have, because his eyes are still shining with mischief and the sudden burst of adrenaline.

"You shred my hear into pieces, Evans."

Lily can't help but let out a dry laugh at that, but she doesn't say anything.

She decides that this was still the least horrible head girl duty until now.

JLJLJL

"James, could you please pass me the scissors?" Remus asks, as Peter tries to stop the vines from strangling Remus and himself. "And where in Merlin's name is Sirius?"

James shrugs because, really, he's not sure where exactly Sirius is. Sirius isn't one to normally go off on his own, so it only makes it even more difficult for the rest of them to expect where he is.

He hands the scissors to Remus quite mutely, because he's bored as hell, with his vine dead. It died when he accidentally spilled some unknown substance on it, and although he is glad that he is saved from actually having to fight against such monstrous beings, he is certainly not glad that Sprout has given him detention for bringing the unknown substance into class, which he doesn't even know where it's from and definitely doesn't remember ever possessing it.

"Thank you, James." and the last part of his name is said through gritted teeth, because the vine has just found itself around Remus' writs and Peter's head.

"Greetings, my fellow Marauders!"

James turns abruptly from the sudden voice, and he grins as he finds Sirius there who has apparently just appeared from under his invisibility cloak.

"Where've you been?" he asks, as Sirius hands him the cloak under the table.

"Nothing." Sirius replies, and he sees James' vine. "What it Merlin's pants happened to your devil?" he asks, and he pokes the dead, fly luring vine with his own wand. "That's vile."

James shows Sirius the now empty bottle that once carried the unknown substance.

"This," he starts with a deadly glare at the bottle. "is what killed my vine. And this is what got me into another week's detention. Bloody hell, it's not like it's mine." he lifts the bottle with much force, and examines it, careful to not get the remaining substance on his hands. "Wonder how it got here in the first place."

He's slightly surprised when Sirius snatches the bottle from his very hands, and feels his eyebrow raising when Sirius quickly takes a look around before wrapping the bottle with his handkerchief and putting it securely inside his robes.

He stares just like that until Sirius looks at up at him.

"My parents." Sirius explains gruffly. "Sent it to me this morning. I was out making a letter that makes you bleed when you touch it. That's why I'm late."

James blinks, because Sirius is just creepy at times. How can a letter make someone bleed from mere touch? But then again, he just doesn't want to even imagine.

"It's poison then?" he asks in a slightly lowered voice, and now that he does lower his voice, he can actually hear Remus and Peter still struggling from the vine as well as several shrieks of girls associated with the whole commotion. However, once he sees Sirius' troubled expression and mouth that is continuously opening and closing, he can't hear any of the surroundings any more.

"Yeah." Sirius replies in a quiet and slightly cracked voice. "I reckon it is. They said it was perfume, but why would they send me perfume even if my birthday is coming up? Besides, no such perfume is purple in colour."

James finds himself without words to say, because this is not the time to make light hearted jokes out of the whole situation, nor does it seem like the appropriate time to actually attempt words of comfort.

He's never been in a situation where a friend could have been assassinated by their own parent's attempt, so he just doesn't know what to say at all.

He doesn't really decide to do so, but he finds his hand patting Sirius lightly on the back, and although he keeps thinking this isn't enough, he can't help but think that his natural instincts are the most appropriate.

JLJLJL

Lily can't help but notice that the rowdy and normally obnoxious group is just too quiet, and that it's not normal at all.

So she quietly slips next to Remus, who seems to think he is still doing the best in burying his worries and anxiety by burying his face into a text book in the library.

"Hi, Remus." she says, and Remus looks up almost instantly. His anxiety shows fully when he's off guard, but it is quickly concealed anyway with a slight smile. It's a smile that's so small and so mild, but it's all it takes to conceal everything for him.

"Hello, Lily." Remus replies, and he moves a bit so that Lily can settle next to him. "Can I help you?"

Lily rolls her eyes, because sometime Remus is just unbelievingly stiff with responsibility and maturity that he just seems to not notice that it is others that are trying to help him, not the other way around for once.

"No," she replies, because it's not Remus' fault that he thinks she wants his help, because his company is a bundle of need and aid. "I just thought you looked down."

"Oh." Remus nods, and he looks back into his book, but looks back up not long after as if he remembers it's impolite to cut off a conversation like that. "It's nothing."

Lily tries to figure out who in the group is going through the problem, but she can't manage it because they all look equally upset if one of them is the one with the problem.

"Is there something wrong with Potter?" she guesses, because he's been the first to look all tensed up and serious. She regrets it because that must mean that she is actually paying attention to the daily life of Potter.

Remus chuckles.

"No, I don't think so." he replies. "It's really nothing you need to get concerned about, Lily. However, I'll make sure James knows you're worried for him."

"I am not worried for Potter." Lily snaps, and she thinks it came out in a way that would make her seem oversensitive of the topic. "It just seems strange that all of you are so quiet."

"Is there any chance that Professor McGonagall asked you to figure out what's wrong?" Remus asks quite sharply with a slight frown.

"No." Lily blinks, because why in Morgan's name would McGonagall ask Lily to do such? "Is that something she would do?"

"No." Remus shrugs. "It just seemed very odd that you'd be wondering about us when no one has asked you to."

Lily knows that Remus means no harm, but the things he says are sometimes just annoying and mocking in a sense. But she knows better than to retort in the exact same way, because that's what Remus is expecting, and the best way to get anything out of him is to respond in the least expected way.

"So it must be Black then?" she asks, and she's surprised that it doesn't feel too awkward to avoid a subject and start a new one. No wonder Remus uses it so often to everyone.

But a moment later she realizes that Remus is still someone she needs to go a long way to follow up with.

"Class is starting within a minute. I'll see you later, Lily." and he's gone.

JLJLJL

"Moony," Sirius whines like a mistreated, affection-deprived puppy. "what are you thinking?"

Remus is silent for a split second, before he turns another page of the thick book he's reading and then replies, not looking at any of them.

"I'm thinking of whether James' hair is a distant descendent of the cross breed of Devil Snare and Gilly Weed, both very difficult to sustain, but easily restrained with fire." Remus replies mildly, and James is quite amused of Remus' theory even when he can feel that Remus is making up whatever is going through his head right now and during the past few hours they spent in the common room.

"No you're not." Sirius retorts. "You've only read a quarter of the book during the last two and a half hours, and that's the first time you flipped a page during the last ten minutes." James decides that Sirius is definitely creepy, and it's evident that Peter thinks so too, because he's squinting his eyes in a manner he does everytime he finds something mildly disturbing yet fairly amusing.

Remus looks up from his book with a raised eyebrow, and James knows that he is slightly disturbed as well.

"Sirius, have you been watching me?" he asks, and his voice is quiet but that only gives a better idea that he's trying to remain calm even when he's very startled.

"Well, yes, I mean, no." Sirius replies, and James muses on the rare scene of Sirius Black stuttering. "I...never mind." he finishes, and James smirks at how defeated and sheepish Sirius looks. Oh, Remus is really all that takes to change Sirius completely.

Remus closes his book with a slight sigh.

"Actually," he starts, and Sirius' head snaps up. "I've been thinking of the substance your parents sent you."

"The poison?" James asks, and he's a bit guilty because of the even more morose expression on Sirius' face.

"Well," Remus starts slowly. "I'm not sure if you can call it poison. It says that in the Medieval times, they used to put in a fair amount of rosebay in the first attempts to create perfume like substances."

"But rosebay is poisonous." Peter points out. "So doesn't that still make the perfume poisonous even if it were meant to be a real birthday present for Sirius?"

Remus lets out a long sigh, and that's enough for all of them to understand that Remus is not going to deny, but actually agree and accept as well.

They don't say anything after that, and although Sirius hasn't gone anywhere this time, he's almost too silent that his existence is unknown. James thinks how easy it is for such a loud person to disappear, and he can't think of anything else but that.

JLJLJL

Lily decides that they're all pretending to be morose, just to surprise Black on his birthday, which, according to the girls of all grades, says is coming up in a few days.

It still doesn't explain why they all look so depressed though, but she doesn't want to trouble herself with some problem they'd properly never let her in with.

But she finds herself curious and anxious once more while Potter is all hunched up and entering the library. Black isn't with him, so he wouldn't need to pretend if he ever was doing so, and Potter never comes to the library with the right state of mind, so it only makes Lily even more worried and mildly disturbed.

"Potter!" she calls in a hushed shout, which is more like a sharp whisper, but not exactly a whisper itself.

Potter turns around wide eyed and startled like a wild animal, and Lily feels herself tutting from the uncommon sight.

Still, Potter soon grins although it's a tired grin that may grow into something like Remus', and comes over.

"Yeah, Evans?" he asks, as he takes a seat next to Lily. "Mind if I sit down?"

Lily rolls her eyes, because it's a stupid question when you're already sitting next to another.

"Get up." she says, slapping James' arm, and James looks hurt but complies. "You were sitting on my bag." she says, pulling up the book bag and shaking it a couple of times before putting it next to the other seat next to her.

James grins, and it's almost the grin that Lily's used to seeing on his face, and she smiles a bit herself. James sits down next to her again, looking at the chair before doing so, as if making sure that there won't be a reason for him to get up once more.

"Once again," he starts, as Lily slips a book mark between the pages and closes her book. "Oh. You use a book mark as well?" he asks suddenly.

"Excuse me?" Lily asks because it's something that she hasn't expected. Not when Potter started with 'Once again,'. It just doesn't fit.

"I mean, you use a book mark as well."James repeats with a slight shrug. "Is it your thing or is it a girl thing?"

Lily feels a frown etching between her eyebrows and on her forehead. It's not a frown she makes when she smells something foul, but it's just a frown of disbelief and awe of stupidity.

"It's a universal thing." she finally replies, just when James' face is changing into curiosity to anxiety.

"Oh." he says and blinks. "But Sirius and Peter and I don't do it. So it mustn't be a universal thing, right?"

Lily frowns and laughs at the same time.

"And since when were you three the standard of such?" she asks, only to realize that people she have seen never really use a bookmark as well, but just fold the page of the book, which is really quite effective if not for the ugly crease that remains later even after a decade.

"Yeah, but have you actually seen any one who uses a bookmark other than McGonagall and Remus?" James asks, and Lily is quite surprised that James is actually thinking like herself. "Most of the professors don't use a bookmark either."

"That's because they either memorize it, or just use their wand to put between the pages, which is the use of a bookmark." Lily retorts and sighs. "But, no, no one really seems to use a bookmark these days." she feels defeated, but she's not a sore loser, so she decides she doesn't mind too much.

"See!" James exclaims triumphantly, and earns several shushing noises. "I knew Remus was a complete and utter girl." he says, lowering his voice. "And he said that he was the normal one."

Lily wants to retort because really, Remus is the least abnormal one among these total freaks, but she decides this is enough chit chat with Potter, because she really doesn't want to get a warning from Pince, and she's pretty sure she'll get one if she continues to talk longer than necessary.

"Anyway," she starts with a dismissive hush. "that wasn't why I called you _here in the library._" she emphasizes the last of her words, just to make James continue to acknowledge where they exactly are.

"Right." and James shifts as though he's about to sit up, but stops and just leans forward a bit in an attentive behavior. "What did you want to say?"

Lily takes a deep breath, because she'll need a lot of breath to say whatever she's about to say in one single, quick sentence.

"Issomethingtroublingyou?" she says and only once she says it does she let out the long breath she had taken in. She feels whatever little breath she had wheeze out as James quirks an eyebrow with a confused and dumbstruck face.

"Sorry?" he asks, sounding apologetic. "What did you say? I'm not usually bad at catching words, but I think I just missed it. Sorry."

"I said," Lily repeats as she breathes in deeply once more, this time just because she's used all the oxygen in her lungs already. "Is something wrong?"

"Oh." James says, and he seems to need a moment to register what he has just been asked of, not because he hasn't heard it nor understood it, but because that was the least expected question to receive from Evans. "I'm sorry if I'm sounding all rude, but why do you ask?"

Lily sighs and shakes her head, because she's determined not to make herself any more humiliated than now.

"Does there have to be a reason?" She returns the question slightly pointedly, and she can't imagine just why that is a comment that would make Potter grin so widely all of the sudden.

"Nothing." James replies, though, and Lily just hates him for even making her ask in the first place if the answer was to be that and just that. But then again, it's her that decided to ask, so she can't really blame James either. "It's Sirius' birthday in a few days, and we're just troubled of what to buy him. He has everything, you know."

And although it isn't quite the answer Lily expected earlier, it still is enough to make her groan out loud and bury her face into the hard leather cover of the book she's been reading, as soon as James is gone.

JLJLJL

James decides that dumping Sirius' face into a cauldron cake or stacks of them won't really be a very good idea because he doesn't see just how that would be any cheering up.

So, he decides that they should all get into a prank, a special and secret prank for Sirius.

Obviously, Remus is slightly reluctant, while Peter seems willing enough to help as much as possible.

"James." Remus starts, and James remembers just who made him hate reason and sense. "You're head boy." the last two words are spoken clearly if not a bit slowly, and James frowns a bit at that.

"I know what I am, Moony." he says, and sighs. "But isn't it okay to just not be a head boy for once? For you to not be a prefect for just a day? Just for out dear Padfoot?"

And Remus honestly seems hesitant by that, and James isn't about to miss the chance.

"Pads has been down for a while now." he continues, nudging Peter slightly for assistance. "I mean, wouldn't you be depressed if your own parents tried to assassinate you?"

"Yeah," Peter says, taking the hint. "Besides, we've gone through most ideas of cheering up Padfoot, but none of them seem to really work, do they?"

"There were other plans as well?" Remus asks, and that isn't really the response James was going for. "Why have I never known that?"

"Because they were all really stupid and just...stupid?" James tries with a slight wince. He knows he should have let Remus in with the plans, but really, they were just too stupid, and Peter agreed that the plans would either earn a snort or denial from Remus.

But then again, if Remus had known their former plans and thought they were pitiful, maybe he would have come up with a master mind plan for them sooner.

James automatically slaps his face with his hands.

"James?" Remus asks, pulling away James' hands that seem to have been attached to his face now. "There's really no need to hurt yourself just for that."

James just groans because, really, if Remus did happen to have a better and less destructive idea, things would be far better by now, both situationally and financially. James and Peter had already used most of their money buying preparations for the 'ultimate prank'.

"So, what is the plan?" Remus asks, turning to Peter this time, and James knows it's no good when Remus turns to Peter, because it just shows how pathetic he's being.

"Fire works." James replies before Peter does.

"Fire works?" Remus repeats, and he raises an eyebrow and his faced is etched with the thought of 'how cliche'.

"Yeah." James nods.

"Only they're not ordinary fireworks." Peter interrupts, finally having his say. "They're going to make Sirius laugh."

"How will fireworks make Sirius laugh?" Remus asks innocently. "Do they fart or tickle?"

"No." James shakes his head, and he feels his head becoming slightly dizzy and his glasses shaking on the edge of his nose a bit. He pushes up the glasses more securely. "Although that may be a good idea."

"So what is the idea, then?" Remus asks, and although he doesn't seem impatient, he does seem eager now.

"We're going to charm them to write out whatever Sirius may like to hear." James replies with a proud grin. It's a simple idea, but the more it is thought and mentioned, he feels oddly proud and excited. "Which would be insults of his family, but the really important thing is that, if we take the proper moment to trigger it, which could be an owl and a charm from one of us, it goes on and on and on until Sirius wants it to stop. No interference from the staff or anyone. Brilliant, yeah?"

"Classical, but brilliant." Remus agrees with a wide smile as well. "Only, your method may not be as classical as the idea, since you don't really know how to do the brainstorming and mind mapping for the fireworks, do you?"

James has to agree that, no, he has absolutely no idea of how to do the charm accurately without causing a total disaster that may include explosions, and he's fairly sure Peter doesn't know as well.

"We bought the fireworks." Peter interrupts his thoughts, and he's strangely relieved. "So why don't you do the charms, Moony? You're the only one can do it properly anyway."

Remus seems hesitant, because, really, the charms is what really brings the prank to life, and although he has his duties, James is sure Remus doesn't want to miss out on another prank. A meaningful and important prank.

So, Remus nods and James feels a grin spreading on his face.

It's all for Sirius anyway, so there is really no point it calling it a prank when it really should be called a gift.

JLJLJL

Lily is heading to the library when she spots something.

"Peter?" she calls, and the figure stops a moment. "Peter Pettigrew?"

There are a few rustling sounds and soon Peter's face.

"Hi Lily." he greets her with a too polite smile. "What are you doing here?"

"Library." Lily replies, as she squints to see behind Peter. "What are _you_ doing?"

Peter looks around and he looks very nervous, and his feet shuffling aren't really much of a help for him to escape with a normal excuse.

"Nothing." he settles on, and Lily wonders just who the four think they're talking to.

"Another prank?" she asks, and she can't help but snicker when Peter pales and looks almost like a marshmallow. "Or am I just being assuming?"

Peter seems like he's a mouse between water and fire. Why Lily thought of a mouse to refer to him, she doesn't know either.

"Umm...assuming?" Peter replies, and it's more like a question but that makes it easier for Lily to realize that she only needs to think of the very opposite.

But she really doesn't feel like spoiling the fun for them this time, so she just nods.

"Alright." she says, turning away. "Make sure you get back in before curfew."

JLJLJL

"Why is my cereal all saggy?" Sirius complains as he spoons his cereal and then drops the screaming pixies back into the bowl of milk.

"Because you poured milk in it, and no cereal is meant to remain crispy when left untouched for such a long time." Remus reasons, as he calmly checks his watch and gives a subtle look to both James and Peter at the same time. James winks in return, and Peter nods slightly, putting down his oatmeal dipped spoon.

"And besides, I see no reason to why you would eat cereal today of all the days. You never have cereal for breakfast anyway." Remus continues, as he starts to lightly tap his fingers on the table.

Sirius looks down into his bowl of drowning corn pixies for a moment, before staring at Remus' hand.

"Moony, what are you counting?" he asks, and it's almost frightening that he can tell that Remus' random finger drumming is actually counting of seconds.

"Hmm?" Remus asks, slightly distractedly before realizing what Sirius has just realized. "Oh. I'm waiting for the post to arrive." It's obviously a lie to James and Peter, but it's just perfect for anyone else, including Sirius to just take what Remus says.

"Owl post?" Sirius asks a bit disbelievingly.

"Yes, owl post." Remus replies patiently, and his fingers are starting to drum a bit more quickly now. James is momentarily confused of whether he misunderstood the finger drumming as count downs, but he doesn't really care.

"Why..." Sirius starts, before his expression changes completely. "Oh. Is your post coming today?" he asks Remus in a slightly hushed voice. "The..potion?"

"What?" Remus asks, a bit confused himself this time, but it takes less than a moment for him to regain his calm face and voice. "Oh. Yes." he replies curtly, because an owl has just entered the hall, and although it isn't the one that will start the morning surprise or rather chaos, it shows that it won't be long before the 'trigger-owl' will be here.

"So, this one will really work right?" Sirius asks eagerly and hopefully. "This'll prevent the changes from now on?"

"Yes, they say so.." Remus replies, and the last of his words are slightly dragged from the distraction as several owls come swooping in from above the ceilings. He gives Peter and James a quick pleading glance that begs all to clearly for them to make a distraction.

James is clever and Peter is careful enough, but they both cannot think of a single distraction and they just give each other glances that turn the duty of thinking towards the other, before they spot Remus' hand gripping tighter to his wand as more owls come rushing in and Sirius asks why on earth Remus is holding onto his wand like that.

James sighs deeply before getting up from his seat with arms wide open.

"Happy Birthday to you-" he sings, or rather wails in a pitch that he's not at all comfortable with. He should have been more careful in choosing the octave, but it's too late now, and all he can do is nudge Peter hard on the side to get up as well. "Happy Birthday to you-" he continues and he can feel everyone in the great hall staring and sniggering and rolling their eyes. He can practically hear Lily slapping her face, but he can't care less at the moment. This prank has got to work, and it's not as though it's the first time he's doing something embarrassing in public.

"Happy Birthday--" he shrieks, and he's glad to hear Peter join him in the shrieking and disturbingly ridiculous vibrato, and almost as glad to hear wild snickers and laughter that mean nothing less than complete distraction. He can tell by thumpings and bangings and screams, that people won't notice if their owls died on their breakfast, and that one must have died as well.

They both manage to hold long enough without actually losing attention and air.

"--dear Sirius! Happy Birthday-" Peter makes a show of spinning and widening his arms to Sirius, and James folds his arms towards his heart, like the opera singers Remus had shown him during holidays. "-to you!" they make a harmony, and although James has somehow ended up in the tenor part and his voice cracks, it's worth it because the next moment, sounds of explosion and blinding light are there in the great hall, screaming phrases of praises of Sirius and insults of the Blacks(or particular members of the family) that James certainly doesn't remember including.

He stops admiring the fireworks that are proudly spitting out sparks and shines of insults and harassments, and looks at Sirius, who he should be paying most attention on at the moment.

Sirius eyes are wide and almost surprised, but the next moment not a moment later since James watched, his entire face breaks into a grin so wide, that it actually makes his face look like just one big giant mouth and teeth.

And although the Slytherins are booing and the staff is panicking and running around with wands out to stop the commotion, and McGonagall is coming up to them enraged but amused, James feels like this is all just worth it.

JLJLJL

Lily can't help but grin at the fireworks that have both very amusing but dirty insults of Black's family and almost obnoxious praises for Black himself.

She decides it was definitely worth letting Pettigrew go the evening before.

JLJLJL

It takes exactly a hour and a half for McGonagall to force Sirius to stop the fireworks, and another whole day for the fireworks to stop coming back every few times even afterwards.

Later as James thinks about it again, he thinks that the whole distraction and actual triggering were even more brilliant than the prank itself, and evidently Sirius feels so as well.

"Bloody brilliant!" Sirius exclaims, and James starts to wonder if Sirius' cheeks aren't aching. "Sweet Merlin, just goddamn genius." and he whirls a few times before collapsing onto a random bed, which James notices is Remus'.

"Happy birthday, Padfoot." Remus is the first to actually say it, and Sirius grins gratefully at him, happy and content as though that was just what he needed to make him fly to the moon.

"Seventeen!" Peter says almost gladly. "Finally. Never thought the day would come for you to follow up."

"Sod off Wormtail." Sirius says, and throws Remus' pillow to Peter, who yelps and runs, laughing.

"That's my pillow, Sirius." Remus says, smiling despite himself, bending over to pick up the pillow. "You'll find yours in your bed. Now get out." He pushes Sirius playfully, and James can just see Sirius blushing.

"Sorry." Sirius mumbles, as he scrambles out of the bed, head down as if he thinks he can hide his blush away by black curtains of hair from James. He could hide them from Remus, but not James.

Remus smiles, and flattens his slightly ruffled blankets before reaching for his rucksack and pulling out three different, very thick books.

Just as Sirius opens his mouth to ask, Remus turns around and declares that he's going to the library.

"What?" Sirius exclaims, and he sounds hurt. "But it's my birthday, Moony!"

"I'm only going to return them." Remus replies, walking out of the dorm. "It's not going to take long." and he's gone from sight.

"He always spends the entire evening looking at other books, though." Sirius mumbles, and he looks like a six year old child, who's just been abandoned from his mother.

"Aw," James can't help but tease. "Ickle Sirius is lonely? Upset?" he earns a glare from Sirius, which is not at all malicious, but certainly threatening in it's own doggy way. "And Mummy thought Sirikins is all grown up now!"

He feels his glasses slamming against his nose, and an oof escaping his mouth.

"Hey!" he exclaims, trying to pull the pillow off, which, unsurprisingly, has fallen off the moment after the crash. "What did you do that for?" he says, taking off his glasses to wipe them when he realizes his sight is slightly blurred with face-prints.

"For mocking the birthday boy." Sirius declares proudly, thumping back onto Remus' bed and taking in a deep breath.

"Moony tells you to get off his bed, and the next moment your back on it." James says, tutting and laughing at the same time. "You really are just a mongrel, aren't you?"

"I'm going to throw Moony's pillow at you if you disrespect me one more time." Sirius says, clutching Remus' pillow and hugging it tightly. "D'you think he'll notice if I switch pillows with him?"

"That's..." James can't continue the sentence even when he has something ready to say, because Sirius' behavior and thoughts are totally understandable. It is, especially when James is in no better situation. "Nah, I suppose he won't." he says, and he believes it too some extent, and he knows that even if Remus did notice, he wouldn't say anything.

Sirius is silent, and he has his face pressed firmly onto Remus' pillow, and James feels all too much sympathy and slight pity as well. He wonders if Remus is actually that oblivious or just ignoring Sirius' behavior, which James has noticed changed ever since fifth year.

"Pads." he calls softly, as if he doesn't want to interrupt whatever thoughts and sensations that are going through Sirius' head and senses at this very moment."Yeah?" Sirius replies, and his voice is muffled and slightly low again.

James has to swallow hard before speaking.

"I really think you should tell him." he finally manages, and he wishes he could say something different than that.

"What and who?" Sirius asks, and his voice is just too carefree that it's enough to indicate that he's actually forcing it.

"To Remus about you-know-what." James says, and he almost hates himself for not being able to say anything more useful and because of the feeling that he's actually pushing Sirius to the very edge.

But then again, he can't really say anything more useful because Sirius never goes to the point where 'if's exist. Not when it's about Remus, anyway

There is total silence, and Sirius doesn't seem to be willing to break it, so James leaves it there as well.

JLJLJL

Lily is nearly terrified to hear footsteps and see nothing when he's returning from the library.

She's even more terrified to admit that she is indeed terrified, but how can anyone not be terrified of something that is just strange. At least ghosts don't even make noises, and still manage to present themselves easily.

"Lily?"

She yelps and literally jumps a few inches before turning around with a furious frown.

Remus is there, with a stack of books in his arms, looking at her quite curiously.

"Is everything fine?" he asks, and Lily feels like shouting no, nothing is fine and what the hell is Remus doing sneaking up behind just like that, but he feels a sigh forming instead and her frown softening.

"Yeah, I'm fine thanks, Remus." she says, but she notices the sound of footsteps are gone now, and she can't help but ask Remus.

"Remus."

"Hmm?" Remus replies just as mildly as ever.

"Didn't you hear something?" and Lily just knows that she sounded mad, and is assured that she definitely did sound mad when Remus raises an eyebrow.

"Hear what?" he asks.

"Nothing." Lily says, but soon sighs and adds. "Footsteps."

"Other than mine and yours?" Remus asks so very lightly that Lily only feels even more miserable because she's sure to be mental. "It's past curfew, Lily. Of course I haven't heard anyone else. Maybe Mr. Filch or Mrs. Norris, but no one else."

Lily nods because Remus is completely right. It's past curfew, and she's an excellent detector in finding students that are still out at this time. If she hasn't seen anything, she most probably hasn't heard anything as well, because that's only logical.

Still, the uncomfortable, dodgy feeling doesn't leave her fully even afterwards when Remus is gone and she's there alone once more.

JLJLJL

"Another kitchen raid, Prongs?" Remus asks as James is trying to look as innocent as possible with pumpkin pie stuffed into his mouth.

He shakes his head, willing enough saliva to gather so that the hastily stuffed pie can at least turn softer in his mouth.

"Lily seemed scared." Remus continues, as he lets his book bag drop onto the floor and stretch. "She'd kill you if she realizes that you were her subject of momentary fear."

James winces a bit at that, because really, the idea of dying in the very hands of Lily Evans is not pleasant. Not even when he had promised death for her if necessary.

"Evans wouldn't kill Prongsie." Sirius says, coming out from his hide out. "She's too fond of him to do that."

James isn't sure if Sirius is just joking around with him, or actually being serious, but he doubts that Sirius' tone is joking, and he thinks that Lily is growing on him as well, so he doesn't protest. He swallows his pumpkin pie and grins even when he's sure it would be a very very yellow and crispy one.

"Only thing we need to do to get her to marry you now, Prongsie," Sirius starts and James finds himself actually holding his breath. "is to get her away from the rest of the male population."

"What?" he nearly chokes out. Evans has no eye for the male population, so James can't stop him from being afraid at that.

"Your biggest rival is Moony." Sirius says defiantly, and points to the very innocent and surprised Remus. "Think about it Prongs. He's the next person who gets to go near Lily the most without you strangling him, and Evans is also very fond of 'nice, kind, sweet' Remus."

James shoots a glare at Remus and forces out, "Remus would never do that, would you Moony?"

"Of course not, Prongs." Remus replies lightly and very innocently and truthfully at the same time. James is glad that he has Remus to trust on when it comes to Lily.

James turns to Sirius to ask the same, but he stops himself from doing so, because he knows Sirius would never take over Lily. Asking something so obvious and unchanging is just a waste of time and key to Sirius' mourning once more.

Still, he decides Sirius deserves something for the warning that really isn't much of a warning when James comes to think about it, so he picks up the cauldron cake and throws it into Sirius' face, who actually does fall off his seat rather comically. Definitely worth the waste.

JLJLJL

James gets an odd feeling one day that, indeed he has been patient enough and that time is running out. The latter, he thinks, is quite silly considering the fact that there is in fact quite a lot of time before they graduate, and he's certain that he'll pursue Lily even after graduation anyway.

However, James was never one to let his common sense get the better of him, so he decides that it is time.

"Time to what?" Sirius asks as pours himself a cup of pumpkin juice.

"What?" James asks in return, because he's sure that Sirius directed that question to him, but he's not really sure what made Sirius suddenly ask such a thing.

"You said, 'It's time.' and I asked you what the bloody hell you're talking about." Sirius replies and he frowns a bit. "Or are you just talking to yourself?"

"I'm talking to myself." James replies, because that's just true, but he feels ashamed after admitting it so easily. "I meant that I think it's time I asked Lily out."

"You do that all the time." Peter interferes.

"I was getting to that." James snaps, and clears his throat before putting emphasis in his next word. "_Again_."

"How long has it been?" Remus asks as he picks up a couple of boiled eggs.

"I dunno." James shrugs. "Maybe a month?"

"Really?" Remus says, cracking his egg against the edge of his plate. "I thought it was about two weeks."

"Must feel like ages for Prongsie here." Sirius says instead, and lands a hand on James' shoulder. "Good luck mate. Evans is a women of her words. She'll accept this time."

It's a joking tone, but James can tell Sirius is really being honestly encouraging.

He nods and laughs out for no particular reason.

Sirius' hand stiffens before he breaks out in barking laughter and then it's not long before Remus starts chuckling and Peter is also laughing.

James gets a feeling it really is time.

JLJLJL

Lily is quite surprised to get a note from Potter, seeing as he stopped passing notes to her after forth year when she hexed him into next week after getting her in detention for that.

However, this time Flitwick doesn't seem to notice, so she decides she can spare James' neck.

_I don't get a thing Flitwick's saying. Do you?_

Lily feels her lips quirking upward at the note, but she quickly hides it by rubbing her cheeks and then her eyes as well, just for good measure.

She takes a moment to consider whether to reply right now, because she knows Potter would think she's eager if she replies too fast.

Still, for once her urges get the better of her decision and she dips the tip of her quill into the ink and starts writing, telling herself it's better to end this quick than deliberately making it long.

_Yes, in fact I do._

She thinks about whether to add a 'why do you ask?' but decides that just sounds too eager as well, because she's not eager of what she knows is coming. Really, she isn't.

She quickly glances at Flitwick before throwing the note back to James who she sees beaming before she turns back to face Flitwick's extraordinarily long explanation on the blackboard.

It doesn't take long before another note falls next to her, gently as if it was charmed.

_Reckoned you would. So, could you help me? I can't afford failing in Charms as I did in Defense._

Lily snorts because Potter hasn't failed in DA. He's received a lower score than Remus, but then again, they've all got lower scores in Defense Against the Dark Arts than Remus, so it's barely anything to feel bad about.

Still, she finds herself writing anyway.

_Fine. What exactly don't understand? It's all fairly simple you know._

And once she finishes writing it, she folds it again and tosses it back to Potter.

The next reply comes quicker than the last.

_Not much. Just a few, but I can't really name what because it's the minor details that get me. So is Thursday night after dinner good?_

Lily decides that James is just being so obvious on purpose and rolls her eyes as she turns slightly to James and nods.

The broad grin she receives makes it slightly less frustrating when Flitwick says, "..and the law of gravity also applies...Ms Evans, is there something wrong?"

JLJLJL

It feels like ages since last full moon, and James is glad that Moony seems to be quite happy nowadays because it makes it easier for Prongs and Padfoot to actually herd him away from Hogsmede and deeper into the forest.

Padfoot is just full of glee and he's jumping around pushing Moony into trees and barking merrily and then darting away before Prongs can give him a warning. Peter seems a bit disturbed when Moony nips on Padfoot's neck after being pushed into a pond and getting out with some difficulty, because Moony actually growls and bites down hard enough for Padfoot to whimper a bit.

Still, there is no scent of blood and Padfoot doesn't seem to mind much, but continues to distract Moony and they run around the Forbidden Forest just before dawn breaks and Moony is tired and a bit more violent just as he is right before the transformation. He must hate being pushed away once more, and Remus would know that although Moony is pushed away an entire month and Remus only a day.

They take Moony to the shack again, and Moony does protest, but it doesn't take long before he agrees and gets under the willow and through the tunnel into the shack.

JLJLJL

"I think Pomfrey is starting to think it's a bit strange that I don't have much injuries nowadays." Remus says as he idly picks a stray yard of thread from his bed covers.

"She said that to me as well." Sirius says, sitting next to Remus eagerly and carefully at the same time. "Asked me if you had anything to feel good about these days."

Remus smiles at that, and asks.

"And you said...?"

"I told her you get good grades, and even passed in Potions, and then you have great friends who behave better."

James can see Sirius' eyes dart a bit as if hesitating to say something, before he does add it in after a moment that is long enough to be thoughtful but not awkward.

"And I said you had a girlfriend, which would make perfect sense why the wolf wouldn't do much harm."

Remus continues to smile at that but doesn't say anything, and James sees Sirius' face falling before it regains it's shine and humor, if not a bit of cynicalness as well.

"Oh, look at that!" Sirius says, poking Remus in the sides. "You aren't even denying it! So you do have a girlfriend, huh? Is that it, Moony?"

The 'Moony' is a bit too long and drawled to be light as it is most of the times, and James feels a bit uncomfortable at that, because Sirius hasn't said 'Moony' like that since last year's terrible prank.

"Maybe someone I know?" Sirius continues, now tickling Remus who giggles a bit at that. "Do I know the girl, Moony? Or is it just a secret as well?"

Remus makes an odd sound that is both a snort and a laugh, and James smiles at how Sirius grins despite his darkened expression and Peter laughs.

"You don't know any of the girls in our school, Padfoot." Remus says, and tries to get away from Sirius' grasp. "You wouldn't know her even if I gave you all the descriptions. And stop, because that tickles."

Sirius does move away from Remus, or at least moves his hands away from Remus' side and rests then over his head.

"I'd know her." he says, and James can see the jealousy and frustration in his eyes. Eyes that have turned into the dark grey, stormy grey that are just like an impending storm. "I'd try to find her."

Remus doesn't respond to that, and James comes to a conclusion that he's trying to fall asleep and decides it'll be better to leave Remus with some quiet now.

"Come on." he says, getting up and nodding to Peter and Sirius. "Let's give Remus some peace."

Peter nods back at that and gets up, but Sirius continues to stare at Remus' back as if he hasn't even heard James.

"Pads." James calls in a hopefully not so demanding voice. "Let's go."

Sirius does get up at that, but still won't look at either James nor Peter. He won't even look at their direction.

"Bastard." Sirius finally says, and it's a slightly biting tone. "Not even telling us. Damn you, Remus."

James isn't sure if Remus has responded to that, when there is a slight stir, because it's hard to tell whether it's just Remus sleeping or pretending to sleep.

"Come on." Sirius says, still in the same biting way. "I thought Moony needed a bit of _peace_."

And James doesn't know but doesn't mind just how Sirius is the first to leave when he was the first to suggest it.

JLJLJL

James hates to think that Sirius is being a total bastard to Remus, because Remus is bewildered and Sirius is snapping at him, which has never happened before.

He thinks he can understand how Sirius must be feeling, but he certainly doesn't think this is the way he should be acting.

He also often finds himself wondering just why Sirius is being like this when he's known Remus has been dating a girl for a while now. But then again, it must be the obvious he finds himself in doubt at times.

"That's why you should have told him." he presses gallantly, and he knows just how stupid it is to do so when he and Sirius are sitting on the edge of the lake, where Sirius can push James into any time he wants.

"Shut up." Sirius grumbles before picking up a pebble and throwing it with full force into the river. James can tell just by the shape of the rock that Sirius didn't mean to do anything but throw it because it was all round and stout instead of flat and thin, and it doesn't surprise him that Sirius continues to throw aimlessly.

"At least he'd have stopped dating her." he continues, and Sirius glares at him, and he decides he's said enough.

"So how much do you reckon they've done?" he asks suddenly and James gapes at him in return.

"How should I know." he says, and tries hard to tone down his surprise and incredulousness. "I mean, come on, Pads, how would I know?"

"Yeah, I guess you wouldn't." Sirius agrees after a moment more of a hard and focusless staring. "Still, he wouldn't have done too much, right?" and it's nearly a plead for agreement.

"Yeah." James nods and he's suddenly desperate to provide reason and evidence. "Well, he isn't that much in to girls or things like that anyway, and he's always with us."

"Except when he's in the library." Sirius adds morosely, and James just wonders why Sirius makes the whole thing harder for himself.

He feels immensely frustrated all of the sudden, because really, Sirius is just thinking too much and suspecting too much.

"You know," he starts a bit sharply. "if you can't trust Moony that much, just use the bloody map to watch where he goes."

"I did, that is, when we still had it." Sirius replies. "He does go to the library, and he's not always alone nor among a group, you see."

James blinks because he did not expect that answer, and he's certainly taken aback once he's gain the mind to think of the answer twice.

"Can't believe you actually stalked him." he finally says, and bites his tongue as he sees Sirius' face let frustration grow and etch itself on ever part of his face.

"You did it to Evans and you were suggesting it anyway!" Sirius protests.

"Why can't you just trust him?" James shouts back. "I mean, it's Moony! He's trustworthy and kind, and he's just Moony, the person you're always mourning over!"

"By the sounds of it, I wouldn't be surprised if you declared your love for him tomorrow." Sirius sneers, and his voice is honestly dripping with malice and sarcasm. It's not a voice that James is used to, but certainly not something he can't handle.

"Well go fuck yourself if you're going to start that shit." he says, and he can't care less that he's using foul language at this very moment. "I'm not here to just listen and take that goddamn nonsense. I'm not Remus for god sake."

Sirius freezes at that.

"Remus doesn't take the shit I give him." he says.

"Yeah?" James returns. "Well at least he doesn't say anything when you're acting like a total idiot to him. He doesn't even know what's going on, but he doesn't say anything either."

"Indifference, that's what it is." Sirius mumbles, and he's morose once more.

"It's called patience and tolerance you dimwit." James snaps, and he can feel his chest loosening a bit, so he pauses a moment. "Honestly, I feel sorry for Remus at times. How he has to put up with you."

Sirius is silent before he replies.

"Supernatural." he says and it's like the same mumble he made earlier, only a bit less like a complaint this time.

James smiles a bit at that, because they are both just hopeless no matter how much they deny it, which they've recently given up doing as well.

Neither speaks for a while before Sirius looks up with a sheepish grin.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to be such an idiot."

"Yeah." James nods. "You know, you could always tell him. It would make sense now that you've practically given him the entire reason for your tantrum."

Sirius snorts at that.

"He'd freak. Wouldn't come near me, you know? Would think that I'm joking around again."

James sees the point in Sirius' argument, which Sirius would probably had said in hope of being denied of. He sees enough reason to deny it as well.

"No he wouldn't." James presses. "He always takes you too seriously. Why would he think you're joking now?"

Sirius shrugs and doesn't reply, and it's this very strange, unexpected moment that James realizes that this was just about the longest conversation they had even had about Sirius' crush on Remus.

"Hey." James starts, lying flat on his back and sighing a bit from the unexpected cool dampness.

"What?" Sirius replies, but he doesn't lie down next to James, only leaning back on his palms a bit.

"Up for a bet?" James suggests, turning a bit to face Sirius.

"What bet?" Sirius asks, and he turns to face James as well, only he has an eyebrow raised and looks down instead of up.

"That, if I get Evans to go out with me this time, you tell Moony about the whole thing." James states, and he realizes that it actually sounds pretty good once out than in.

Sirius snorts, but it's not all that derisive but just a bit playful and just a bit struck.

"Cheeky bastard." he says, rustling James' unruly hair. "Fine. What if you don't get Evans this time _again_?"

James rolls his eyes.

"Now that's just cruel." he says with a faked pout and earns a laugh from Sirius. "If, and I tell you now this is never happening, I do not get Evans this time as well...Well, you're just free to die in misery by the name love."

Sirius smacks him on the head, but it's barely hard enough to mean anything emotional not cause any pain, so James grins it off, landing a hardy hand on Sirius' shoulder in return.

"So what d'you say?" he asks in the best challenging tone he can manage with his neck craned and aching. "Deal?"

Sirius snorts, which soon turns into laughter.

"Deal."

JLJLJL

Lily is waiting in the common room, and she's definitely not sure why in Merlin's name she's feeling a bit giddy and nervous.

She decides that her dinner was poisoned.

She subsides into sighs and self pity and opens her charms book which she founds fully prepared for any form of explanation.

She ponders in self pity for a moment longer before there is a loud crash, and she whips her head around to see a couple of first years standing next to a broken vain, which is now sobbing uncontrollably.

She shakes her head as she gets up and does a simple Reparo.

"Careful with the furniture." she advises the terrified first years. "They'll have a grudge on you for the entire year if you mistreat them."

The first years nod hurriedly, but they seem relieved that Lily isn't about to hurt them.

Lily is also relieved that this group of first years aren't as annoying as some are, and she comes to sit in her seat once more.

However, her relief doesn't last long as he hears the portrait hole opening and a silhouette appearing on the common room wall.

A silhouette with unruly hair.

"Hey, Evans!" and she turns around to find Potter standing there, grinning broadly at her.

She nods and points to the seat across from her. James complies without any sort of comment and sits down, but then Lily notices that there is only one book of his when she has brought about four different ones.

"You only need one book?" she asks a bit distastefully, because although she knows that this is just another wild scheme of Potter, she still thinks he's being far too confident and that he should at least try to act out the scheme a bit more carefully.

"We only use one book in class anyway." James shrugs and then stops as he sees Lily's pile. "Oh."

Lily glares at him before shutting close her books as well.

"If you don't understand what our book says, it means you need to find a different one." she snaps. "Because really, that book is not the easiest book existent."

"But I'm not having that much trouble with any of it." James replies, and Lily let's out a frustrated groan.

"If there isn't much trouble," she starts, narrowly stopping herself from jabbing an accusing finger at James' chest. "why not just ask one of your friends to help?"

It's not that she doesn't like to help people, on the contrary, she is actually very familiar with and quite enjoys helping people around her. However, she does not like to help people whom she may lose control while assisting. James Potter, to her horror of recent consideration and self discovery, is certainly on the top list.

"Nah, they'll laugh at me." James says matter-a-factly and Lily just needs to stop and think of what exactly Potter is planning to do after saying a bundle of things that have just made her furious, or irritated at the very least. She decides she is utterly hopeless, and it's a surprisingly easy decision. A bit too easy for her taste.

"And I won't?" she asks testily, and she knows she can still get through this anyway. She reminds herself she is Lily Evans, which seems quite pointless at this moment for some reason. "Just how stupid are your questions? There is a limit I can stand, you know."

"Just wait." James replies strangely calmly. "Wait. You'll have to have patience with me."

Lily can't get rid of the nagging feeling that that 'have patience' is very familiar, a bit too familiar for her liking, but she certainly manages to ignore it, which she does immediately. Instead, she concentrates and readies herself for just what stupid questions Potter might have.

"Well?" she finally asks after a while. "Are you going to ask or what?"

"Lily." James says, and Lily realizes he looks a bit too serious for someone who's about to ask a question regarding first year charms. She also realizes a moment later that she has just been addressed by her given name. "Will you go out with me this Hogsmede weekend?"

Lily nearly slaps herself for being too unsuspecting. Of course, that was going to come sooner or later. She had known it, and she must have been expecting it, but now she is just unprepared for such nonetheless.

"Potter," she finally manages. "is _this _your question? Or is this a separate one?"

James seems to consider before replying.

"Um...this is my question?" he shrugs as if that would take away the unsureness of the statement.

Lily can do nothing but sigh.

"Look," James starts. "I've been patient, right? But I'm still persistent and I'm also being very persuasive, aren't I? Those were the three things you said you valued. I've got all three things. Isn't that good enough?"

Lily can't help but think just how arrogant and self confident Potter sounds, but she has a good idea that he'll continue saying this everyday before he finally decides to abandon all three things at once, which Lily knows was hard-earned for his part.

"Potter, shut up." she snaps, because she hates to speak in a commotion, and her snapping is certainly a way to regain her unseemingly lost calm.

Of course, James shuts up immediately and looks at her, waiting for an answer, with eyes just as pleading but hoping and oddly confident as well. Lily can just feel that this is a total disaster even when those eyes aren't.

"Fine." she finally pulls out, because although she could have managed to stay like that in silence, not saying anything, the look Potter continues to give her just doesn't allow that. "Fine. My Hogsmede weekend is now officially spoiled because of you. Now go!"

James gets up faster than a mule on fire as though he fears Lily will change her mind, which Lily admits, she does have half the mind to do so if he says another word.

"Thanks Evans! See you." and he's gone.

It's not exactly the right words, and she's just been addressed with her comfortable last name, so Lily decides not to take her answer back.

JLJLJL

"Padfoot! Hey, Pads!" James shouts as he opens the door to the dormitory.

Only, there is no answer.

"He's asleep." Remus replies instead, putting down his book. "Peter says he's been dozing off since right after dinner."

James shrugs because Sirius certainly seemed energetic while having dinner earlier.

"You sure he's sleeping?" he asks, heading towards Sirius' bed to find a very limp and snoring Sirius. "He rarely snores, you know."

"He does sometimes." Remus reasons. "When he's famished."

James wonders just how Sirius is famished, and how he could have the energy to be snoring in that case.

"Well," he shrugs before stretching. "Might as well enjoy the peace and quiet of the evening then, shall we?"

Remus nods, but his nods seem too absent minded for Remus Lupin.

"Something wrong, Moony?" James asks, and although he reckons it's a bit rash to ask such, he has a good idea that it's totally appropriate and friendly as well.

"Not much." Remus replies, but the last part of his answer is slightly dragged. "Has he gotten a letter from his family recently?"

"No." James replies, and he gets an idea, a very clear idea of where this is heading. "Why?" But of course, he knows better than to show his realization because that always ends the confessions of others.

"He seems a bit on edge, doesn't he?" Remus asks, and it's strange how he could sound so uncertain and cautious but also so sure and punctuating.

"Must be his family." James states, and it's really not a lie because he's saying it as an assumption as well. "You know how it is."

"Yes." Remus nods slowly, and he's wearing a slight frown that gives James the supernatural power to see that Remus is convinced but worried. "I wonder at times. Will there ever be a time when his family would stop returning to haunt him?"

It's an uncommonly childish question for Remus, James realizes, and he gets a feeling similar to that when a five year old asks for confirmation of Santa Claus.

"Maybe." he shrugs his shrug that's all a bit too assuring for a shrug. "After we graduate and after the war, yeah."

"The war..." Remus murmurs, and James regrets ever mentioning it again.

He thinks about changing the subject, and maybe even giving away his good news, but he realizes Remus is in the state of merely attempting to be attentive and nothing more.

So he sets off, leaving Remus to his thoughts because Remus is someone he can talk to without awkwardness even after that.

JLJLJL

The next morning, James wonders if Sirius has noticed that he's just lost the bet, because Sirius is sleeping as if he's dead that James just can't bring himself to even try to wake him.

Respectively he gets up and struggles an extra eight minutes to flatten his hair because now Evans will actually look at him no matter how much she tries not to and denies it. He also remembers that it should be Lily, not Evans from now on.

His efforts are futile, which he has expected although he hates to admit, and he heads down to the great hall feeling slightly defeated, but not that defeated at the same time.

He decides that he must look quite ridiculous with his hair halfway to behaving itself, so he just runs his hand quickly through it before actually taking a step into the great hall.

Lily isn't there yet, and he doesn't feel too disturbed by that because he's just noticed that he's a bit early today.

"Prongs, what happened to your hair?"

James whips around to see a yawning Sirius who is scratching his head, which looks no better than James' at the moment.

"You're up early." James comments before budging a bit to make Sirius room. which is quite unnecessary considering that the table is still very empty.

Sirius snorts.

"So are you." he says as he reaches out for a bun. "You made such a racket that we all got up, you brat. Honestly, I was having a pleasant dream before you had to start throwing things in the bathroom. And," he points to his hair in a suggestive manner. "I found my comb was broken. Care to provide me with one of your profoundly sensible explanations, Mr Potter?"

"I'll get you a new one." James shrugs after shivering a bit from the cold stare that Sirius throws him. "You have to admit, yours was useless."

"Mind you, that was one I nicked from dear old Moony." Sirius grumbles before smacking his bun with jam. "Shoot, I meant to go for the marmalade."

"And they say early birds get the bugs. I guess you're one of the exceptions. Come on, go get yourself a new one." because that's really the most obvious and reasonable solution James can think about before snatching Sirius' jam covered bun and stuffing it into his mouth. He has jam all over his hand, and he thinks of just how ridiculous that is when he's supposed to be a bloody brilliant snitch-catcher. Not a seeker technically, but a snitch-catcher.

"How kind of you to dispose my bun." Sirius drawls and James stops chewing only to snort before the half or more chewed bread catches in his nostrils. He chokes and snorts and it's rather ridiculous even for himself, who should be too busy getting the bread out or back where it came from to notice. "That's just vile."

"What's vile?" and James doesn't need to look up to see who it is. It's undoubtedly a still morning drowsy Moony and an eye rubbing Wormtail by the sounds of fingers rubbing against teary eyes.

"Prongsie here just choked on _my_ bun." Sirius announces proudly in a grumpy way, and James wants to hit him over the head of how joyful he sounds all the same. "_My _bun, Moony. _My_ bun!"

"Prongs, how mean of you to steal Padfoot's bun." Remus comments before sitting across from James. "First bombarding the bathroom, and now this? What has our world become of?"

"Cut off the dramatics, Moony." James snaps after managing to swallow the bun and take out the remains of it that were inside his nose which, oddly enough, he cannot recall where it has gone to.

Remus grins, and James wonders just what was so funny that made Remus grin not smile. Maybe smiling was just too polite in such a situation, but a grins is wider anyway and far brighter even with the teeth that must be the major element to all the brightness.

"My towels were covered in hair gell." Peter says rather suddenly, continuing to rub his eyes. "I didn't know and I just wiped my face off it. It itches horribly."

James feels a pang of guilt, and decides that he should mention this whole surprise before he gets pelted by this mod.

"I have a breathtakingly grand and most fabulous announcement to present." he starts, and he frowns at why he just started like that.

"Cut off the dramatics, Prongs." Sirius snorts. "That's my thing, remember?"

"Oh do shut up." James snaps before continuing in a slightly threatening tone. "Do you or do you not want to hear what I have to say?"

"Oh please do continue." Sirius comments, grinning widely. "But before we get the news, is it something that we should brace ourselves for?"

"Yeah, but it only applies to you." James says and smirks at how stricken Sirius looks at that. He always knew Sirius was a smart guy.

"And now I fear to hear the rest." Remus says and looks down into his bowl of oatmeal as if he were back in tea leaf reading sessions. "What exactly have you done now?"

"Oh, you'll be so proud of me, Moony." James says, and he feels his grin growing wider. "Lily."

"What about Evans?" Peter asks before his eyes widen midway. "Wait a moment. You just called her Lily instead of Evans."

"Precisely." James nods and watches Remus' face grow into one, surprised from realization, as well.

On the contrary, he realizes, Sirius seems caught, rather awkwardly, between joy and misery.

There is a surprised, shock silence of which no one is sure of how to break with the obvious and casual manner, comment or motion.

"That's excellent, James." Remus is the first to break it after a few more moments with a broad smile. "Congratulations!"

"Yeah." Peter adds. "Honestly it's a bit surprising, you know, to get the news like that overnight, but definitely great. So were you the one to smear my towels with hair gell?"

"Umm..yeah." James says apologetically, because although he knows Peter is not going to mind, he still feels quite sorry since he knows what it feels like when hair gell seeps into one's eyes. "Sorry 'bout that. I forget yours is the one with floral prints."

"They aren't floral." Peter points out. "You can't call scattered flower prints floral prints. They just aren't the same. It doesn't work."

"Yeah, scattered flower prints." James nods because he could agree with any nonsense at the moment. "Sorry, anyway."Peter nods understandingly and James now feels free to turn to Sirius.

"Pads?" he starts with a mischievous grin. "Don't be a sore loser. Come on, say it."

Sirius looks horror struck, and he quickly glances around before looking back at James with eyes that glare and plead at the same time.

"I can't say it here! What, do you just want the whole school to know?" and he honestly grows paler.

"I don't see why the whole school shouldn't hear your congratulations, mate." James says, grinning mischievously at just how momentarily relieved Sirius seems. "But you are going to say it after breakfast once I distract Peter from you two." he adds, leaning over and whispering.

"I can manage it perfectly well by myself, thanks." Sirius says and he tries to put on his haughty expression which is, for the first time, a total and utter failure, turning out into an expression mixed of dismay and dispair.

"Yeah?" James asks testily. "And just how do you know if we'll be out of your way if you try to do it yourself?"

And James doesn't wait for an answer because he pulls away and turns to grin at his two other friends.

"You know, Pete," he starts brightly. "I think this calls for a celebration, and seeing that we're free for first period, why don't you and I sneak out to Honey Dukes? Get some sweets and maybe some butterbeer on the way as well."

Peter nods enthusiastically at that, and he seems like he's about to say something if not for the half chewed bacon and eggs that are stopping him from even making a bold attempt to open his mouth.

However, Remus doesn't look all too happy, let alone enthusiastic of the idea.

"James, you're head.." Remus starts, but is cut off by Sirius.

"Let him be, Moony. And anyway, there's no point in trying to talk some sense into him. You and I have to study for defense, remember? He'll sneak out the moment we head to the library anyway."

Remus seems a bit suspicious at that.

"Since when did you study for defense, Sirius?"

"Since our dear old Moony started to mock us for not studying and _occasionally_ getting a question or two wrong." James answers instead, giving Sirius a meaningful and assuring look before popping a cherry into his mouth and standing up. "Come on, Wormtail. We've got business to attend."

And for the first time, he's not sure if Sirius' silence is a good thing, but is certain that Remus' is.

He's sure, however, that he himself and Peter are perfectly happy and about to succeed greatly, because one thing the shop owners of Hogsmede least expect is an early morning raid. And although there is yet to see, James feels like this is the perfect moment to announce 'Mischief managed' nonetheless.

End


End file.
